Today ๐๐๐๐ณ, we are going to look at my favorite hieroglyphic symbol: Anubis ๐ฃ! So out of all 700+ symbols, this symbol of Anubis on a shrine ๐ฃ has always been (and will always be) my absolute favorite!
There are three ๐ผ variants of this symbols: ๐ข, ๐ฃ, and ๐ค. The variants just mean that all three symbols could be used in the same way to represent the same thing!
The official name of this symbol given by Egyptologists is โrecumbent jackal on shrine ๐ฃโ and it is used as both an ideogram and a determinative. ๐ฃ is the determinative in the word โAnubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃโ and also an ideogram for โAnubis ๐ฃ.โ
When ๐ฃ functions as an ideogram, the โ๐ฃโ would be pronounced the same as โ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ.โ The proper way to say Anubis in Middle Egyptian is โjnpwโ (pronounced like โInpuโ). ๐ – j (i) ๐ – n ๐ช – p ๐ ฑ – w (u) ๐ฃ – Determinative – not pronounced!
The name ๐๐ โAnubisโ is actually the Greek version of his name, not the Middle Egyptian name ๐๐, so that is why the hieroglyphs donโt match up with how we are so used to saying Anubis/Inpuโs name ๐๐!
Since this is my absolute favorite symbol, when I was a kid, I was so mad that I could not use this symbol as part of my name ๐๐ (my name written out is ๐๐๐ก๐ฏ๐ญ๐ญ).
While a lot of the same themes and ideas persisted through the Egyptian religion for thousands of years, changes and evolution did occur from time to time! One of the ways those changes showed up were in the evolution of gods ๐น๐น๐น and goddesses ๐น๐น๐น๐. In both classical Egyptian and Graeco-Roman times, Horus ๐ ๐ญ, Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ and Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ were very popular deities ๐น๐น๐น, however, their names ๐๐๐ฆ and roles did evolve.ย For example, Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ was replaced/referred to as Serapis ๐น๐จ๐ญ๐๐๐ช๐ by the Ptolemies. Today ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to look at one of the ways that Horus evolved ๐ ๐ญ!
In this picture ๐๐ ฑ๐, Horus ๐ ๐ญ is represented in his Greek form Harpokrates ๐ ๐ญ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ก๐๐ง๐๐ญ (or Harpocrates), with his trademarked “finger to lips” pose. This pose represents the โbe quietโ gesture because to the Greeks, Harpokrates was the god ๐น of silence. In the Hellenistic world, Harpokrates could also be the god ๐น of secrets, confidentiality, and even the embodiment of hope!
The name ๐๐ Harpokrates ๐ ๐ญ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ก๐๐ง๐๐ญ is actually a Greek adaptation of the Egyptian โHeru-pa-kheredโ or โHeru-pa-khartโ which translates to โHorus the Childโ or โHorus the Younger.โ This name ๐๐ makes sense when you look at the statues ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ๐ช, because Horus ๐ ๐ญ/Harpokrates is represented as a child! Also, the determinative hieroglyph (last symbol in the phrase) for the word child โ๐๐๐/๐ก๐๐ง๐โ shows a seated boy with his hand to his mouth, which is where the idea for the representation of Harpokrates ๐ ๐ญ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ก๐๐ง๐๐ญ is thought to have originated from!
Here is a breakdown of Harpokratesโ name ๐๐ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช: ๐ ๐ญ๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ก๐๐ง๐๐ญ – Harpokrates
๐ ๐ญ -Heru ๐ ฎ๐ฟ – pa ๐ก๐๐ง๐๐ญ – khered/khart
My Nonno took this picture!! This is a statue of the Pharaoh Horemheb ๐๐ ๐๐บ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฑ with the god ๐น Amun ๐๐ ๐. Amun ๐๐ ๐ is pictured as larger than the pharaoh ๐๐ป. The gods ๐น๐น๐น were always depicted bigger to symbolize the fact that they were more important than the pharaoh ๐๐ป. The only being a pharaoh ๐๐ป ever bowed to was a god, since the pharaohs themselves were gods ๐น๐น๐น on Earth.
Amun ๐๐ ๐ was the King of the Gods (kind of like Zeus). As early as the 11th Dynasty, Amun ๐๐ ๐ was the patron god ๐น of Thebes. At the start of the 18th Dynasty, the god ๐น Amun ๐๐ ๐ gained great national importance in the pantheon and this is illustrated with Amunโs fusion with the sun god Ra (Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐บ๐ณ).
Letโs read some hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช!ย
On the left side of the statue, the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช read: ๐ค๐น ๐๐ฟ๐ฟ(๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ณ๐๐)๐๐ ๐๐บ๐ณ ๐ป๐๐๐น – this translates to: โThe great god, lord of the two lands, Djeser Kheperu Re, beloved of Amun-Ra, given life.โ
While on the right side, the hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช read: ๐ ญ๐ณ ๐๐๐ฅ(๐๐ ๐๐บ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฑ) ๐๐ ๐๐บ๐ณ ๐ป๐๐๐น -this translates to: โSon of Ra, lord of appearances, Horemheb, beloved of Amun-Ra, given life.โ
Not only was Maat ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ the goddess ๐น๐ of truth, fact, law, order and justice, โmaatโ was also a concept and a way of life in ancient Egypt ๐๐ ๐๐. The noun โmaatโ is translated as โtruthโ so living by maat, meant living a pure and truthful life. Maat was also the balance and order in the whole universe.
Maat ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ is usually shown as a woman with a feather on her head. Her most important role was in the judgement of the dead ๐ ๐๐ฑ. The god Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ข would weigh the heart ๐๐๐ฃ of the deceased against Maatโs ๐๐ด๐ฃ๐๐ฆ feather ๐ to see if they were worthy to enter the Underworld ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ and meet Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ. If the deceasedโs heart ๐๐๐ฃ was balanced with the feather ๐, they were declared โtrue of voiceโ ๐๐ค, and could meet Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ.
This statue is at the Petrie Museum at UCL in London!
The statue of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ feeding Horus ๐ ๐ญ as a baby is one of the most popular images ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ of the Late Period through the Ptolemaic Period. Symbolically, Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ was thought to be the mother ๐ ๐๐ of the pharaoh ๐๐ป (The Divine Mother), and was often associated with motherhood ๐ ๐๐, the protection of women, and a user of magic. As Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ became a more popular religious figure, she was associated with cosmological order and was considered to be the embodiment of fate by the Romans.
This image ๐๐ ฑ๐ of a mother ๐ ๐๐ holding a child is thought to have inspired the well known Catholic images of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus as a baby. The amulet ๐๐ช๐ and statue was very popular in Roman households, most likely as a symbol of motherhood and family. My Nonno always made sure to point these statues out to us, as he felt they were really important due to the likely influence on Catholic symbolism.
The image ๐๐ ฑ๐ of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ feeding Horus ๐ ๐ญ as a baby is one of the most popular images ๐๐ ฑ๐๐ฆ of the Third Intermediate Period, Late Period and even through the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods.
This image ๐๐ ฑ๐ appeared in bronze ๐๐ค๐๐ฆ, stone ๐๐๐๐ช, and even as small ๐๐๐ด๐ ฉ amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช! My Nonno would always point out these pieces of Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ feeding Horus ๐ ๐ญ as a baby because he felt they were so significant to the evolution of religious art through time.
While my Nonno loved Egyptian ๐๐๐๐ and Roman art, he also loved Christian/Biblical art, so these Egyptian ๐๐๐๐ statues ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ๐ช were kind of a natural connection between his area of interests! I always make sure to look for statues ๐๐ ฑ๐๐พ๐ช like this in museums whenever I visit!
Symbolically, Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ was thought to be the mother๐ ๐๐ of the pharaoh ๐๐ป, and was often associated with motherhood, the protection of women ๐๐๐๐๐, and a user of magicย ๐๐๐ฟ๐. ย As Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ became a more popular religious figure, she was associated with cosmological order and was considered to be the embodiment of fate by the Romans. ย Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ was widely worshipped during the Roman times, and Isis ๐จ๐๐ฅ feeding Horus ๐ ๐ญ as a baby has even appeared on the back of Roman coins.
This image ๐๐ ฑ๐ of a mother ๐ ๐๐ holding a child ๐๐๐ is thought to have inspired the well known Catholic images of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus as a baby.ย
This sunken relief and inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ย is from the sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย of a man named Harkhebit who lived during Dynasty 26 (c. 595-526 B.C.E.). This sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย is one of the better examples of Late Period ancient Egyptian stonework and is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.
One of the best things about Egyptian art is that sometimes the hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ชย act as โcaptionsโ and tell you exactly which deity ๐น you are looking at! The name ๐๐ of the deity ๐น usually appears above their head in an inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐!
Duamutefย ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ and Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ.
On the left, we can see Duamutef ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ who is one of the Four Sons of Horus that was tasked with protecting ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the stomach ๐๐ฃ๐ป. ! Duamutef can also be spelled like ๐ผ๐๐๐, and it would be pronounced the same! A lot of the names ๐๐๐ฆ of gods ๐น๐น๐น, goddesses ๐น๐น๐น๐, and even pharaohs ๐๐ป๐ฆ had variants. A variant is just an alternate spelling of a word! A determinative could also appear at the end of the name ๐๐, which would make them appear as ๐ผ๐ ๐๐๐ญ and ๐ผ๐๐๐๐ญ.
On the right, we can see Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟย who is also one of the Four Sons of Horus who was tasked with protectingย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the liver ๐ ๐๐๐น๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ! Imsetiย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ can also be spelled likeย ๐๐๐ด๐๐, and that variation is the one you will see most often so it was very cool to see this particular spelling!ย A determinative could also appear at the end of the name๐๐ , which would make them appear asย ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ญ andย ๐๐๐ด๐๐๐ญ.ย
Hapyย ๐๐ช๐ and Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐
On the left, we can see Hapyย ๐๐ช๐, who is one of the Four Sons of Horus.ย Hapy ๐๐ช๐ had the head of a baboon and protectedย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the lungs ๐๐ด๐ฅ๐ ฑ๐บ. Hapyโs name ๐๐can also be spelled like in โ๐๐๐ช๐โย hieroglyphsย ๐น๐๐ช. The spelling seen on this sarcophagus (๐๐ช๐)is a less common variant! Even in English, Hapyย ๐๐ช๐ย can also be spelled like โHapi!โย
On the right, we can see Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ who is another one of the Four Sons of Horus.ย Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ย had the head of a falconย ๐๐๐ก๐ andย protectedย ๐ ๐๐ก๐ย the intestines ๐๐ช๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ผ. The way thatย Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ is spelled on this sarcophagusย ๐๐น๐๐๐ญย is the most common way I have seen the name ๐๐ spelled!ย
A determinative could also appear at the end of the name๐๐ , which would make them appear asย ๐๐ช๐๐ญ andย ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐๐ญ.ย
Much like Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ and Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ were popular deities ๐น๐น๐น to see on funerary equipment ๐๐๐ด๐๐๐ญ, the Sons of Horus were as well because they were tasked with protecting ๐ ๐๐ก๐ organs ๐๐ง๐๐น๐ฆ of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ. That is certainly an important job! Anubis ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃ does appear on this sarcophagus ๐๐น๐๐๐ญ, heโs just in a different spot!
Todayย ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to be looking at an inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ย that includes the name ๐๐ of a god ๐น, and the honorific that follows the name ๐๐ of the god ๐น!ย
Hereโs a breakdown of the inscription ๐๐ ฑ๐:
๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ – Amun-Ra
๐ – Lord
๐ผ๐ผ๐ผ – Thrones
So the inscription fully reads โ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ผ – Amun-Ra, Lord of the Thrones.โ โLord of the Thrones ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ผโ was a popular honorific to use after the name ๐๐ of a deity ๐น like Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ because as he rose to popularity during the New Kingdom, he was considered to be the King of the Egyptian Gods. Amun-Ra ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ญ was also referred to as the โSupreme Godโ and is the combination of the individual deities Amun ๐๐ ๐ and Ra ๐ณ๐.
Here are some variants of Amun-Raโs name ๐๐ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช:
Todayย ๐๐๐๐ณ we are going to be looking at the name ๐๐ of not only a very popular deity ๐น, but also one of my favorite deities ๐น๐น๐น (besides Anubisย ๐๐๐ช๐ ฑ๐ฃย of course)!!ย
This is the name ๐๐ of the god ๐น Thoth ๐ ๐๐ญ in hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! The name ๐๐ Thoth ๐ ๐๐ญ is actually the Greek version of his name ๐๐; the ancient Egyptians referred to him as Djehuty ๐ ๐๐ญ!
Letโs break down the hieroglyphic symbols ๐น๐๐ช together ๐๐!
The โ Ibis on Standard ๐ โ symbol is a variant of the โIbis ๐ โ symbol and has the sound of โแธแธฅwtj,โ which we thing would sound like โDjehuty.โ This symbol is an ideogram, so it represents the full sound of the word it is meant to represent.
Whatโs interesting about the Middle Egyptian Language, is that even though ideograms like โ๐ โ and โ๐โ would fully spell out Thothโs name ๐๐, scribes would still add the phonograms to the end of the name ๐๐ if there was enough space on the monument/object to do so! This made inscriptions ๐๐๐ฅ easier to read ๐๐ง๐ and also look nicer! The ancient Egyptians ๐๐๐๐๐ช were all about the aesthetic!
The โflat loaf of bread ๐โ is a uniliteral phonogram used to represent the sound โt.โ It also functions as the ideogram for the word โbread ๐๐บโ and can be used to make words feminine!
The โtwo strokes ๐ญโ symbol represents the sound โjโ which in English would have the same sound as a โy.โ It is usually only used at the end of a word!
Here are some variants of Thothโs name ๐๐:
๐ ค๐ญ
๐
๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ
๐ ๐๐ญ
๐
Thoth ๐ ค๐ญ was thought to have invented writing ๐๐๐ฅ, and was thus the god ๐น of all record keeping. Due to his vast knowledge,ย ๐๐๐๐ย Thoth ๐ was thought to know magic and secrets that were unknown to the rest of the gods ๐น๐น๐น in the Egyptian pantheon.ย He was also the god ๐น of scribes ๐๐๐ช.
Letโs read the inscriptionย ๐๐ ฑ๐ in the picture above:ย
๐ ๐๐ญ – Thoth (Djehuty)
๐ – Lord
๐น๐๐๐๐๐ – Divine Words/Writing
โLord of the Divine Words/Writing ๐๐น๐๐๐๐๐โ was one of Thothโs ๐ ๐๐ญ many titles! This title makes perfect sense since he was thought to have invented writing ๐๐๐ฅ/hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช! Fun Fact: โwritingโ was usually written as โ๐๐๐๐,โ but on this coffin it is switched to โ๐๐๐๐!โ
Thoth ๐ ๐๐ญ was originally god ๐น of the moon ๐๐๐๐น, but then later became associated with writing ๐๐๐ฅ and knowledge ๐๐๐๐. The moon ๐๐๐๐น could be thought of as a โnight sun,โ which kind of places him as an opposite of the sun ๐ณ๐บ god ๐น Re ๐ณ๐บ๐.
Thoth ๐ ค๐ญ is also credited with inventing the 365-day calendar which is one of the ancient Egyptiansโ long lasting contributions to astronomy! As their math an astronomy got better, Egyptian astronomers even adjusted the year to be exactly 365.25 days, which is the exact time it takes the Earth ๐พ๐พ to revolve around the Sun ๐ณ๐บ! How amazing is that!?
While the four ๐ฝ figures of the Four Sons of Horus at the front of this display look like ushabtiย ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พย figures, they are not!! There are someย blue ๐๐น๐๐ฟ๐ธ๐ฅ faience ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ ย ushabti ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พย figures behind the Four Sons of Horus though!ย
So what are these Four Sons of Horus figures? These are actually called โviscera figuresโ and they were meant to protect the internal organs ๐๐ง๐๐น๐ฆ of the mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ! Usually, the lungs ๐๐ด๐ฅ๐ ฑ๐บ, liver ๐ ๐๐ก๐, stomach ๐๐ฃ๐ป, and intestines ๐๐ช๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ผ were removed, dried with natron, and placed in Canopic Jars for protection ๐ ๐๐ก๐.
In some cases, the organs ๐๐ง๐๐น๐ฆ of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ were mummified and put back in the body. This is where the viscera figures come into play – the viscera figures were then placed inside the mummy ๐๐น๐ ฑ๐พ to protect ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the mummified organs ๐๐ง๐๐น๐ฆ!
From the left: Duamutef ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ had the head of a jackal ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฅ and protected ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the stomach ๐๐ฃ๐ป. Imsety ๐๐๐ด๐๐ had the head of a human and protected ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the liver ๐ ๐๐๐น๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ. Qebehsenuef ๐๐ข๐ข๐ข๐ had the head of a falcon ๐๐๐ก๐ and protected ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the intestines ๐๐ช๐ ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ผ. Hapy ๐๐๐ช๐ had the head of a baboon and protected ๐ ๐๐ก๐ the lungs ๐๐ด๐ฅ๐ ฑ๐บ.
These pieces are dated to the Third Intermediate Period/21st Dynasty (c. 1000โ945 B.C.E.). The viscera figures and the ushabti ๐ท๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ฎ๐พ figures pictured were found in the burial chamber ๐๐๐๐ of Djedmutesankh in a tomb ๐๐ซ๐๐ at Deir el-Bahri.
